Sex, drugs and tattoos: A magazine speaks plainly

CORPORATE PUBLISHING The youth magazine "Hä?" from Rotpunkt-Pharma AG is dedicated to the many unspoken questions of young people. For this, it was awarded gold in the "Best of Corporate Publishing" prize.

The magazine "Hä?" informs about taboo topics in a playful and humorous way.Why do we humans kiss each other? How does the male orgasm differ from the female orgasm? Do old people still have sex? - Questions that many would be ashamed to ask. Yet they crop up - especially among young people. The magazine of Rotpunkt-Pharma AG is dedicated to these unspoken questions. In this context, the name could not be more appropriate: "Hä?" describes on the one hand the trendy word when you don't understand someone, and on the other hand shows the perplexity that is still present even in times of enlightenment.In the youthful sense, there is no faffing about, but plain speaking. Before the table of contents, the "Let's talk about ..." section shows what teenagers think about a particular topic. "This customer segment in particular unfortunately gets far too little attention in communications, but has many unanswered questions. With our magazine, we want to show the boys that we as a pharmacy have answers to their questions and that it is worth going to the pharmacy," explains Rudolf Andres, Managing Director of Rotpunkt-Pharma AG. Since people prefer to read the answers rather than ask them verbally, a channel was created to meet this barrier piecemeal.If you don't ask, you'll never find outHä?" appears four times a year, is aimed at 15- to 20-year-olds, and always takes up a single topic that teenagers are permanently concerned with and that Rotpunkt pharmacies have something to say about. These include tattoos and piercings, beauty, addiction and sex. True to the motto "If you don't ask, you'll never find out", the aspects are treated with openness and a high entertainment value. "The 'Hä?' magazine is intended to help teenagers and young adults perceive the Rotpunkt pharmacies as competent and sympathetic advisors on all body-related issues. The magazine should also be fun to read. The 'raised forefinger' has no place in 'Hä?' magazine," explains Andres. This is clearly evident in the winning issue. The cover shows a lot of skin, but without being offensive. Little text adorns it, but it is to the point. The motto also runs through this issue: The questions provide information about the content.Hä? is written by an in-house editorial team headed by Rainer Brenner, co-owner of the Wessinger und Peng agency. Together with four other people, the content is planned and discussed.Personal and authentic like a consultationMany pictures, cartoons, colorful accents and playful elements shape the youth magazine. There is no talk of order, which is good. "The design is intentionally kept 'rough.' In addition, the use of handwriting contributes to the fact that the content does not appear sterile and unapproachable, but personal and authentic - similar to a personal consultation in one of the pharmacies," explains Marcus Kraft, art director at the studio of the same name.He realized the design of "Hä?" in cooperation with Rotpunkt-Pharma AG. The special nature of the magazine was also the most difficult challenge. "We didn't want to come across as chumming up, either in terms of design or content, but rather to meet young people at eye level," confirms Kraft.For example, the magazine is printed on newsprint paper to give it a warmer feel. Hä?" is also distinguished by the fact that it does almost entirely without self-promotion and advertisements.On the right trackThe effort has paid off. This was evident not only at the BCP Award Night, in which the magazine won gold in the "B2C healthcare" category, but above all in the target group: "The magazine is being picked up by young people and has now made a name for itself in German-speaking Switzerland. The media response is also remarkable," reports Rudolf Andres. The team is also particularly pleased about the feedback from schools that use "Hä?" in their lessons.And the success is to be maintained in the future: "The echo and the BCP award show us that we are on the right track with our unconventional magazine. We bring up topics that are of burning interest but that we are reluctant to talk about. This is a completely fresh way of producing a 'pharmacist's magazine', both in terms of strategy and implementation, one that is aimed at young people and their needs and questions about their health, and one whose design is anything but sickly and old-fashioned," says Andres.The magazine will continue to develop with the young people, because it is they who determine its direction.Author: Melanie Granados